Susan Molinari Out of Senate Race

Former congresswoman Susan Molinari, allegedly encouraged by Rudolph Giuliani, said last week she was looking at a run for the GOP nomination against senator Kirsten Gillibrand. Now she's looking away. She says family comes first, and "it is clear that a statewide race this year is not a practical option for me and our family."

Her father, former Staten Island borough president Guy Molinari, says there was a Draft Molinari movement all ready to go, but on balance he's glad "she doesn't have to get into that snakepit."

The Daily News refers to this and Pete King's recent exit as "running for the hills," which is perhaps unfair. By publicly mulling, both non-candidates clearly wanted the world to know they're statewide material; all they need now is a race where they can make a good showing. Like Rudolph Giuliani, they seem to have judged that this one isn't it, but if the Democratic nomination process becomes sufficiently self-destructive, they can always reverse themselves, as King has already done once already.